The family of the teenager found dead on the side of an Oakland road is raising money to hire a private investigator as they mourn his death on his birthday.
Noah Presgrove, 19, was wearing only two mismatched shoes when his body was discovered on a desolate stretch of US-81 near Terral, Oklahoma, on September 4.
He was last seen alive about a mile away at a four-day 22nd birthday party with friends over Labor Day weekend that was widely documented on social media.
On Tuesday, his loved ones celebrated his 20th birthday at his grave site.
The images showed a cutout of Presgrove placed on the ground next to balloons while a “Happy Birthday” sign was affixed to the ground.
A “Happy Birthday” sign was affixed to the ground while a figure of Presgrove was placed on the ground next to the balloons.
Presgrove’s family recognized the much-loved teenager’s birthday by spending the day at his grave.
His brother Dailen Presgrove has launched a GoFundMe page to hire a private investigator to solve his younger brother’s mysterious death.
The crowdfunding page is intended to help the family hire an experienced detective with law enforcement experience to have a “fresh set of eyes” on the case.
‘This fundraiser is to raise money to hire a private investigator who will be able to solve the case related to the death of Noah Presgrove. Private investigators are very expensive,’ he explained.
‘Among the many of us who have been enthusiastically working on the case for the past eight months, we have already spent many, many hours on the case.
“We are looking for fresh eyes on the case and preferably someone with law enforcement experience and expertise in this genre.”
GoFundMe has surpassed its goal by raising $10,322 after receiving an anonymous donation of $5,000.
Dailen has also launched another GoFundMe for a staggering $10,000 to encourage anyone “withholding information about the case to come forward.”
The 19-year-old was found dead on a desolate road on September 4.
‘Noah Presgrove passed away eight months ago. However, the case remains unsolved.
‘To prevent this case from going cold, this fundraiser aims to encourage those withholding information about the case to come forward.
‘If anyone has information regarding the case that will lead to the arrest of any person responsible, please contact the family to redeem this reward and ultimately put an end to this ongoing investigation.
‘His identity will remain hidden from the public. We will put you in touch with the right people who want justice.
The fundraiser has raised $2,395 at the time of publication.
Oklahoma Chief Medical Examiner Leonardo Roquero’s office confirmed that Presgrove died from “multiple blunt force injuries” but “undetermined” how he suffered them.
Yesterday, the Office of Oklahoma Chief Medical Examiner Leonardo Roquero finally released the full autopsy report, more than eight months later.
Roquero confirmed that Presgrove died from “multiple blunt force injuries,” but it was “undetermined” how he suffered them.
The report provided more details about the horrific injuries the teenager suffered in the hours before his death.
Roquero detailed extensive injuries to the teen’s upper body, including 10 broken ribs, severe skull and neck fractures, internal bleeding and abrasions throughout his body.
There was an extensive skull fracture running through his head, “splitting the middle base of the skull in two,” and several smaller ones, and police investigators described his head as “sunken in,” among other different lacerations.
Presgrove had around 20ml of blood pooled inside his head due to a brain haemorrhage and damage to the brain itself.
Presgrove’s family (pictured with sister Madison Rawling) was confused by some aspects of the report, but said they were confident in the investigation.
A video from the party on Saturday night, September 2, showed Presgrove’s friends drawing their names and other doodles on his body.
He went home and washed up a bit, but it is believed he was unable to remove all of the marker before returning to the party the next night.
One Adidas shoe Presgrove was wearing was his, and the other, a ‘Hey Dude’ slip-on shoe, belonged to another party guest who was asleep at the time.
Oklahoma Highway Patrol detectives, who are leading the investigation, are still unsure how he died and have been told conflicting stories about that night.
Theories include that he was “forcibly pushed from the bed of a moving truck” where the blood stain was, and that he staggered across the road before collapsing.
Presgrove could also have died in an accident or been killed elsewhere and his body dumped on the road.
